CBS Sunday Morning segment

CBS Sunday Morning, March 21, 2021

'The Return of "Extinct" Species'

Here are links to the (Ivory-billed Woodpecker) segment on CBS Sunday Morning. The piece features my good friend Tim Gallagher and myself. The piece was filmed in February 2020.

https://youtu.be/-17TIVjVuTY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-17TIVjVuTY

7:47The return of "extinct" speciesYouTube · CBS Sunday Morning1 week ago

Pic of the Day

Snowy Egret, Egretta hula

Outback Key, Fort Desoto State Park, FL

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/2000 sec. @ f/11

Comet NEOWISE over Keel Mountain as seen 

from Horse Cove near Gurley, AL

4:39 A.M. CDT, July 11, 2020

500mm f/4; 3 seconds @ f/4 ISO800

Pic of the Day

Comet NEOWISE this morning at 4:47 A.M., CDT.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4, 2 Seconds @ f/4 ISO 640

Comet NEOWISE, this morning at 4:47 A.M., CDT. 

This photo is a cropped version of top photo. In this

cropped version, the split in the tail is more easily seen.

     I was up again this morning to photograph Comet NEOWISE.  A cloud in the northeast obscured the comet until about 4:45, but once it moved out the comet was fantastic!  It is best seen with binoculars.  Here in North Alabama it is but a faint smudge, however the coma is seen as quite star like.  The top photo, full frame by the way, shows the comet over Horse Cove, near Gurley, Alabama.  The split in the tail was more noticeable this morning. This morning was overall better viewing conditions and less humidity in the air than on the morning of the 8^thwhen I photographed the comet.  

The bottom photo is the same one, but it has been cropped.  I included the cropped photo so the split in the tail can be more easily seen.  Just behind the coma, the tail splits into two parts from our angle of view.  While comet NEOWISE is current visible in the northeastern morning sky, by July 14^thyou should be able to see it about an hour after sundown in the northwestern sky.

The comet is currently .91AU’s* (85,128, 736 miles) from Earth.  On July 24 it will be .69 AU’s (64,436,192 miles) from earth.

The following website has good information on viewing the comet.

https://skyandtelescope.org/press-releases/new-bright-visitor-comet-neowise/

* AU is an Astronomical Unit, approx.. 93 million miles.  The distance of the Earth from the Sun.  https://www.britannica.com/science/astronomical-unit)

Comet NEOWISE

This comet bears the name of the satellite that discovered it on March 27th: NEOWISE, an acronym for Near Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, used to assist NASA’s efforts to identify and characterize the population of near-Earth objects, such as asteroids. And occasionally, as in this case, it also can discover a comet.    https://www.farmersalmanac.com/comet-neowise-july-2020-131179

Pic of the Day

Comet NEOWISE, July 8, 2020; 4:40 A.M., CDT

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4; 4 seconds @ f/4, ISO1600

Comet NEOWISE, July 8, 2020; 4:46 A.M., CDT

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4; 3 seconds @ f/4, ISO1600

    I was up at 2:55 A.M. to photograph Comet NEOWISE this morning. The sky was very thick with humidity and as the clocked ticked toward 4:00 A.M. the fog was so thick I could not even see stars.  With the loss of visibility I packed up and headed home.  About a mile from the house I drove out of the fog to a partly cloudy sky, and with binoculars I found the tail of the comet poking out from behind one of the clouds.  The comet was by my estimation about 7 or 8 degrees below the colorful star Capella.  I stopped on the road, and as the clouds rolled along the comet became visible, off and on.  These two images were taken with the comet just above Horse Cove, near Gurley, Alabama.

This is the brightest comet I have seen in quite a long time.  It should be visible for another week, maybe two, to the naked eye from what I have read.  It has an orbital period of 10,127 years.  I really don't expect to be around to take photos when it returns so I am happy to have taken these photos.

A shout-out to Stan Burman who posted a beautiful photo of this comet on his facebook page yesterday.  His post alerted me to the comet.  Thank you Stan Burman.  You can see his photo on his Ffacebook page.  I have also shared it on my facebook page (Bobby Harrison) as well.

Pic of the Day

Louisiana Waterthrush, Parkesia motacilla

Horse cove; Madison County, Alabama

    These beautiful warblers, a member oft family Parulidae, nest around my home in North Alabama.  I constantly see them along the creek bed, but some times they fly up the hill to the house and glean around my feeders.  With a dense population nesting along the creek, their beautiful song is a constant reminder of their presence.  I was so fortunate to get this shot, because they are usually hidden in the darkest parts of the forest.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/5
1/200 sec. @ f/8

Pic of the Day

Eastern Wood Pewee, Contopus Virens

Horse Cove; Madison County, Alabama

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/60 sec. @ f/7.1: ISO 1250

Pic of the Day

Common Yellowthroat, Geothlypis trichas

Marshall County, Alabama; USA

just North of Guntersville Dam

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/320 sec. @ f/9

Pic of the Day

Yellow-breasted Cha, Icteria virens

Marshall County, Alabama

Just North of Guntersville Dam

    The Yellow-breasted Chat is our largest warbler at 7.2 inches in length.  It is larger than other warblers, and has a repertoire of songs that sound more like the Mockingbird.  It also has anatomical differences from New World warblers.
     While traditionally  it has always been classed with the New World warblers, it is not a Parulidae.  In 2017 the American Ornithological Society move it to its own family, the Icteridae, of which it is the only member.  The question is.  Is the Yellow-breasted Chat a warbler?  The bottom line, ornithologist really don't know.
     For me, it goes on my trip list as a warbler.  The biggest of all the warblers!

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4
1/250 sec. @ f/8

Pic of the Day

Northern Cardinal, Cardinalis cardinals

Marshall County, Alabama; USA

Just North of Guntersville Dam

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/640 sec. @f/8

Pic of the Day

Summer Tanager, Piranga rubra

Marshall County, Alabama

Just North of Guntersville Dam

     While photographing a Prairie Warbler a week ago or so, this fellow alighted right beside me, allowing me to grab a couple of shots.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/640 sec. @ f/11

Pic of the Day

Indigo Bunting, Passerina Cyanea

Marshall County, AL

just north of Guntersville Dam

When the blue of the day, meets the gold of the evening light.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/320 sec. @ f/9

Pic of the Day

Indigo Bunting, Passerina cyanea

Marshall County, Alabama; USA

Just North of Guntersville Dam

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/250 sec. @ f/10, ISO1250

Pic of the Day

Prairie Warbler, Setophaga discolor

Marshall County, Alabama

Just North of Guntersville Dam

Another Prairie Warbler, and my favorite pose thus far from last weekends shoot.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm  f/4

1/200 sec. @ f/9

Pic of the Day

Chipping Sparrow, Spizella passerine

Marshall County, Alabama

Just North of Guntersville Dam

     I was back in Marshall County, just north of Guntersville Dam chasing down a singing Chipping Sparrow yesterday.  I did not get a photo of this little fellow singing, but did a brief burst of images as it land on a branch in front of me.  I’m very happy to have gotten a few shots of this fellow.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4

1/200 sec. @ f/13

Pic of the Day

Prairie Warbler, Setophaga discolor

Marshall Co., Alabama

Prairie Warbler singing his hear out in Marshall County, Alabama last weekend.  This image was taken just north of Guntersville Dam.  Prairie Warblers nest here in North Alabama, but it has been years since I have seen one.  This bird was not shy at all, and seemed to be responding to the songs of Indigo Buntings,  and Blue Grosbeaks that were singing nearby.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4, 1/320 sec. @ f/9

Pic of the Day

Indigo Bunting, Passerina cyanea; Marshall County, AL; USA, Near Guntersville Dam

    I found this Indigo Bunting  along the tree line at the edge of a field this afternoon.  Thought not in prime breeding plumage it gave me the opportunity to shoot lots of images.  this is my favorite of the day.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/t

1/250 sec @ f/9

Pic of the Day

Common Yellowthroat, Geothlypis trichas

Magee Marsh, Ohio; USA

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm

1/200 sec @ f/8

Pic of the Day

Sanderling, Calidris alba

   I captured this sanderling, Calidris albaworking the ebbing waves for morsels to fuel its journey North. This was photographed at the causeway to Merritt Island on March 1, 2020.  That seems like an eternity ago.  I had plans to return to Merritt Island this week.  We all know that those plans are the only thing going South.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4,  1/4000 sec. @ f/10

Merritt Island, Florida; USA

Pic of the Day

Grasshopper Sparrow, Ammoramus savannarum

Winfred Thomas Agricultural Research Station 

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500 f/4, 1/1000 sec. @ f/9